A very welcome innovation from Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) is the Bridging Flexible Work Permits (BOWP, also referred to as a ‘bridging visa’).
In certain situations, applicants for permanent residency from within Canada are subject to a valid Canadian work permit. The Bridging Open Work Permit was designed as a way to keep workers working in Canada while processing their permanent residency applications.
IRCC realized that applicants who had valid work status in Canada for some permanent residence programmes, but whose work status could run out before a decision was made on their permanent residence application, would benefit from a work permit to ‘bridge’ the difference between the expiry of their current work permit and the decision on the permanent residence application.
Bridging Open Work Permit eligibility
Applicants must have submitted applications under one of the following programmes to be eligible for a BOWP:
Bridging Open Work Permit eligibility
If the application for a permanent resident is not complete, the IRCC will deny the application for a Bridging Open Work Permit and will not refund the processing fees.
Quebec immigration applicants are not entitled to obtain a Bridging Open Work Permit.